Chapstick
by hullosweetpea
Summary: Dark ruffled hair, blue eyes, but his lips. Dean had never seen a man so desperate for chapstick in his life.


Chapstick

Two people were ahead of Dean in the line. The weatherman predicted the impending snowstorm was going to go down in the record books, bringing in at least two feet of snow and possibly an ice storm on the tail end.

Fuck winter. Fuck the Midwest. Fuck Kansas.

So here Dean was, with nearly the rest of the town, trying to get last minute nonperishables for when inevitably the power went out and he was snowed in for at least two days. Yippee.

The older man finished checking out and the line shuffled forward. A young mother with two toddlers and a baby rolled her two carts up the line and frantically placed items on the conveyor belt. The eldest was trying to help, but his short arms couldn't grab anything, so instead he was blocking his mother's path to the conveyor belt. The middle one was hanging on to the side of the cart and babbling to herself. The baby, however had now screwed up its eyes and started wailing for the whole store to hear. The mother faltered, but threw items on the belt faster to speed the whole process along. Dean sat his shopping basket down and set forward. "You need some help?"

The mother turned her head and looked like she was about to cry. "Oh sweet Jesus, yes. Can you just put the stuff on the cart while I try to calm him down?"

Dean smiled. "Sure thing." The mother picked up the baby from the car seat and coddled him close to her chest, bouncing him up and down while make quiet shushing noises.

He emptied the first cart and the eldest pushed it forward to make room for the second. Dean continues to unload the cart and glances at the mother, noticing that the baby has finally calmed down and is sporting a small smile. The eldest in between his mother and the cart, not quite sure what to do. The mother ruffled his hair. "You're fine Jimmy, you can just wait."

Dean smiled. "He's a great kid."

The mother chuckled. "Oh, him and Lydia aren't mine, they're my sister's. This one," she moved the baby so he was now balanced on her hip, "is though."

He put the last box of Pampers on the conveyor belt and the cart was finally emptied. "That should do it."

The mother grinned. '"Thank you so much. You don't know how much of a blessing you are."

"It's nothing." He picked his basket back up and watched as little Jimmy tried to put the newly bagged groceries back in their cart. Before long, they were out the door and it was Dean's turn. He placed his few items on the belt and glanced up at the cashier.

Oh sweet Jesus.

Dark ruffled hair, blue eyes, but his lips. Dean had never seen a man so desperate for chapstick in his life. His outer lip was a slightly soft looking pink, but as it got closer to the middle of his mouth they bled into an angry red flaked with peeling skin on the edges where he had to have been pulling and biting on the skin. "You were very kind to that woman."

Dean blinked and let his eyes wander to the chapstick displays by the checkout. "Anyone else would have done the same."

The cashier shook his head. "I doubt that. On days like these most people tend to be agitated." Dean let his fingers linger over Carmex and Vaseline, but then a lot could be said about plain old ChapStick. The cashier only had three more items to ring up so he grabbed one of each and threw them on the belt. As the moved across the scanner the man frowned. "Is there any benefit for having different brands?"

"Dude, I have never seen someone in such desperate need for chapstick."

The man tilted his head. "You mean it's for me?"

"Yeah, "Dean rubbed the back of his neck. "That has got to be painful. When I was in the second grade I got the worst chapped lips, so my mom got me chapstick, but it was SweeTART flavored. I kept putting it on and licking it off, so they got even worse."

"Is there a point to this?"

"Yes, you've got to be in pain right now."

The man subconsciously licked his lips and flinched. "I suppose you're right."

"So," his eyes flicked down to the name tag that read 'CASTIEL', "Cas will you let me help you?"

"It couldn't hurt." CAS placed the tube of Carmex in the bag. "23.71 is your total."

Dean swiped his card and entered his pin number. "You'll thank me in the long run I'm surprise your girlfriend hasn't said anything about it yet. It cannot possibly feel good when you guys kiss."

CAS cleared his throat with a grimace. "I also believed chapstick was for girls." He handed Dean his sack of groceries. "I also don't have a girlfriend to inform me of my social faux pas."

He raised an eyebrow. "Boyfriend?"

CAS blushed. "Unfortunately, no."

Dean flipped his receipt over and grabbed a pen from a cup. "Well, here." He scrawled his number on the back and handed it over to CAS. "Text me sometime. It's easier to figure out if the chapstick is working if you've got a second opinion."

CAS looked befuddled. "Why would I need a second opinion? And how could you give it?"

Dean winked. "You'll just have to call to find out, now won't you?" He grabbed his bag and gave a short wave to CAS before he walked towards the exit of the store. The wind gusted up his coat the moment he stepped outside and sent a chill across his body. He hustled to his car in the hope he could make it back in time before the first flakes fall. He started his car and drove away from the store back to his home. It may be cold outside, but if everything went well with Cas, perhaps it could warm up long before spring rolls around.


End file.
